Hook and eye garment fastener



Nov. 29, 1960 r M. COHN 61,728

aoox AND EYE GARMENT msmusa Filed Dec. 8, 1958 FIG.2 FlG.3

IN V EN TOR.

MAURICE COHN BY a v ATTORNEYS Unitc 2,961,728 HOOK AND GARMENT FASTENER Maurice Cohn, South St., South Coventry, Qonn. Bi led-Dee. 8, 1958, Ser. No. 779,005 3! Claims. (Cl. 24-227) used in the past in. the manufacture of clothing and V have generally-taken the-form of a preformed sheet metal hook member comprising a base having a pair of downwardly extending prongs and a portionwhich is bent back over the base to form the hook which is to be engaged with a generally'U-shaped eye member. The eyemember is similarly'constructed of sheet metal and is also provided with a pair of prongs, the latter being formed at thefreeends of the legs of said member to extend downwardly therefrom. With the hook and the eye respectively attached to overlapping portions of a garment which areto be fastened together, the prongs of each memberextend through the fabric and are clinched on the opposite side thereof, additional bearing surface for the. fabric being provided in most instances by a backing plate. having apertures through which the prongs are passed prior to clinching. The hook member is attached tooneportionof the garment and the eye member to' the other. insuch a manner as to be adjacent one another when said two portions of the garment are placed in overlapping. relation with one another. With the two portionsfoflthe garment so arranged, the hook and eye membersmay be engaged for fastening the portions of thegarment insaid overlapping relation by placing the openend of'the hook adjacent the body of the U-shaped eye member and sliding the latter between the base and the bent back portion of the former into engagement with the closedtend thereof.

Hook and eye fasteners of the above-described type have found particular utility in the manufacture of trousers andskirts wherein they, have been commonly employed: for fastening the waistband portion of the garment, They may be quickly and easily secured to the garment by clinching, as described, are readily fastened and unfastened and have been found generally satisfactory. They have not, however, been entirely satisfactory.

- It will be apparent that the body of the eye member of ajhook and eye fastener must be spaced from the fabric in order that a mating hook may be readily placed in engagement with same when fastening is to be accomplished The necessary spacing has been accomplished heretofore by; providing prongs centrally on the free end o f ea ch eyernember leg of lesser width than the "legs-so as to .form shoulders on each side of the prongs.

with the eyesecured to a garment and with the prongs egitepding therethrough. and being clinched on the oppositeside thereof, the shoulders associated with each prong eugagethefabElGand limit the extent to which the prongs mayse itend through the fabric whereby to maintain body-o f the eye member in spaced relation with the r i, It; been found, however, that there is a 2,961,728 Patented Nov. 29, 1960 appearance of the garment and may also be a serious hindrance to the ready fastening and unfastening of the hook and eye device. 7

One object of the present invention is to provide an improved preformed sheet metal eye member for use with a'hook as a garment fastener, the said eye member being characterized by the provision of shoulders of an improved construction in association with its clinching prongs whereby wrinkling, drawing in and' tearing of the fabric to which the eye member is secured is eliminated and whereby the body of the eye member is positively supported in spaced relation with the fabric.

Another object of the invention is to provide an improved sheet metal eye member and a backing plate for use there'with,'the said eye member and backing plate being adapted to be connected with each other on opposite sides of a fabric article whereby to be attached to the fabric, and the said member. and plate when so attached tofa fabric article providing for the spring engagement of a hook member therewith whereby inadvertentor unintended; disengagement of the hook is prevented;

Still another object of the invention is to provide an improved fastener of thehook and: eye type wherein the hook and eye members may be properly engaged with each other even when thehook has been inadvertently pressed closed in service.

The drawing shows a preferred embodiment of the invention and such embodiment will be described, but it will be understood that various changes may be made from the construction disclosed, and that the drawing and descriptiona-re not to be construed as defining or limiting thescope'o-f the invention, the claims forming apart of this specification being relied upon for that purpose,

Of the drawing: Fig. 1 is a plan view of the blank eye before preforming;

Big. 2 is a perspective view showing the improved eye of the present invention after preforming together'with a backing plate adapted for use therewith;

Fig. 3 is a side elevational view showing the eye and backing plate of Fig. 2 attached to a fabric article with the prongs of the eye clinched against the outer surface of the backing plate;

Fig. 4 is another side elevational view similar to Fig. 3

.but showing the prongs of the eye clinched with additional force so as to bow the backing plate inwardly toward the body. of the eye member; and a Fig. 5 is a composite sectional view showing two portions. of a fabric article respectively having attached thereto a hook and an eye both constructed in accordance with the present invention.

Referring to the drawing, and particularly to Fig. 1, itwill be seen that in blank form, the improved eye member of the present invention preferably comprises a substantially rectangular strip of sheet metal 10. A central longitudinal portion of each end of the. strip 10 is formed to provide clinching prongs 12, 12 which extend longitudinally with respect to said strip and which are preferably pointed at their free ends so as to cleanly pierce afabric article. Each end portion of the strip 10 is slashed at each side edge of the prong 12, as shown at 14, 14, whereby to provide a pair of longitudinally extending tabs 16, 16.. disposed on, opposite sides, of

- each prong.

the prongs 12, 12 are bent downwardly along the bend lines 17, 17 by suitable means such as a coining press. In this manner, there is formed a generally U-shaped eye member having a substantially rectangular body 18 and having downwardly depending generally parallel legs 20, 20 formed integrally at opposite ends of said body.

In accordance with the invention, a portion of each leg 20 of the eye member is formed to project laterally from the remaining portion thereof and to provide a shoulder with a bearing surface which is disposed approximately in a lateral plane and which has a lateral dimension substantially greater than the thickness of the leg. As will be observed in Fig. 2, the outer portions of the legs 20, 20 comprising the tabs 16, 16 are bent laterally inwardly in the preferred embodiment of the invention and provide shoulders 22, 22 having the stated characteristics on opposite sides of each prong 12 and which are disposed below and in spaced generally parallel relationship to the body portion of the eye member. As will be seen more clearly hereinbelow, the provision of shoulders having bearing surfaces with lateral dimensions substantially greater than the thickness of the legs of the eye member results in a generally superior attachment of the eye member to a fabric article.

A backing plate 24 of generally rectangular shape is also illustrated in Fig. 2. The plate 24 is or may be formed of sheet metal and is provided with suitable apertures 26, 26 for receiving the prongs 12, 12 of the eye member on the opposite side of a fabric article. While the plate 24 is shown as being initially flat with a raised central longitudinal portion 27, said plate is not necessarily so formed as will be explained.

When the eye member is attached to a fabric article, the prongs 12, 12 extend through the fabric and through the apertures 26, 26 of the backing plate 24 on the opposite side of the fabric. On the opposite side of the backing plate 24, the prongs 12, 12 are turned inwardly or clinched against the outer surface of the said plate and urge said plate and the fabric toward the body of the eye member and into engagement with the bearing surfaces of the shoulders 22, 22. In this manner, the eye member, the fabric and the backing plate are securely interlocked and attachment of the said member and plate to the fabric is accomplished.

When a flat backing plate such as the plate 24 and an eye member having shoulders such as the shoulders 22, '22 are provided, the eye member and backing plate may be attached to the fabric article as illustrated in Fig. 3 or, if desired, said elements may be attached as illustrated in Fig. 4. That is, the prongs 12, 12 of the eye member may be clinched inwardly against the outer surface of the backing plate with force sufficient only to hold the eye member, the backing plate and the fabric in attached relation as shown in Fig. 3 or, the said prongs may be clinched with additional force so as to bow the backing plate inwardly toward the body of the eye member as shown in Fig. 4. Due to the particular construction of the shoulders 22, 22, the eye member has the necessary strength for clinching of the prongs with the additional punch force required for inward bending of the backing plate and the relatively broad bearing surfaces of the shoulders 22, 22 prevent drawing in or tearing of the fabric about the shoulders during the plate bending operation. It is to be understood, however, that while a backing plate bowed toward the body of the eye member may be conveniently provided in the manner described, the invention is not so limited, it being obvious that the construction shown in Fig. 4 can be provided in various other ways such as by preforrning a backing plate in bowed shape.

The advantages that accrue from the provision of a backing plate which is bowed inwardly toward the body of the eye member should be readily apparent. In Fig. 4

it will be observed that when a hook of thickness slightly greater than the distance between the body 18 of the eye member and the fabric lying over the central bowed portion of the backing plate 24 is engaged with the eye member, it will compress the fabric and urge said central portion of the backing plate outwardly. The inherent resiliency of the backing plate 24 will result in the exertion of a force on the hook tending to retain the same in engagement with the body 18 of the eye member. Thus, with an inwardly bowed backing plate, spring engagement of the hook and eye member may be provided for and inadvertent or unintended disengagement of said members thereby prevented.

In Fig. 5 a hook member 28 is shown in section attached to a portion 30 of a fabric article. The said hook mem ber comprises a base 32 which has a pair of downwardly extending prongs 34 (one shown) formed thereon. The prongs 34 extend through the fabric 30 and through a suitably apertured backing plate 36 and are clinched on the opposite side thereof. Formed integrally with the base 32 is a hook 38 which is bent back over the said base.

Also illustrated in section in Fig. 5 is the eye member described above. The said eye member is shown attached to an overlapping portion 40 of the fabric article and its prongs extend through the said portion of the fabric article and through the apertures 26 of the backing plate 24 and are clinched on the opposite side of said plate.

An important feature of the present invention is the provision of complementary beveled edges on the hook member 28 and the eye member, the said beveled edges serving to permit proper engagement of the hook member and eye member when the hook 38 has been inadvertently pressed closed in service. As shown, an edge portion 42 of the base 32 of the hook member 28 adjacent the open end of the hook 38 and on the side of said base opposite the prongs 34, 34 is beveled. The edge portions 44, 44 of the body 18 of the eye member on the side of said body opposite the legs 20, 20 are also beveled. It will beapparent that the hook and eye members of Fig. 5 may be properly engaged even when the hook 38 has been inadvertently pressed downwardly or closed as indicated by the broken lines 46. When the eye member is moved leftwardly in Fig. 5, or conversely when the hook member is moved rightwardly, the body 18 of the said eye member may be entered between the hook 38 and the portion 30 of the fabric article and the beveled edge 44 of said body will be engaged with the beveled edge 42 on the base 32. The exertion of a slight amount of force will cause the body 18 of eye member to be urged outwardly against the hook 38 as the beveled edges 42 and 44 are moved relative to each other and the said book will be returned to its normal position allowing the hook and eye members to be properly engaged.

Some of the less apparent advantages of the improved hook and eye fastener of the present invention may be appropriately mentioned in summary. The provision of shoulders having bearing surfaces with lateral dimensions substantially greater than the thickness of the prongs on the eye member is found to eliminate the wrinkling, drawing in, and tearing of the fabric which was encountered with eye member constructions known heretofore. During the clinching operation on the prongs and even when the additional force required for bowing the backing plate is exerted, the fabric is firmly clamped between the shoulders of the eye member and the backing plate associated with said member and is maintained in a smooth condition. After clinching the fabric remains smooth and a generally superior attachment of the eye member to the fabric is achieved. In addition, it will be observed that with the particular construction of the shoulders 22, 22 described, some movement of the said shoulders toward the body of the eye member may occur during the clinching operation without adverse effects. It will be apparent that such movement of the shoulders 22, 22 greatly facilitates the establishment of a desired position of the central portion of an inwardly bowed backing plate relative to the body 18 of the eye member.

The invention claimed is:

1. A preformed sheet metal eye for use with a hook as a garment fastener, the said eye being a generally U- shaped member having a substantially rectangular body portion and a leg at each end of the body portion, each leg comprising a prong which projects downwardly from the body portion and shoulders which are struck from the leg and turned inwardly on opposite sides of the prong to lie below and in spaced generally parallel relationship to the body portion, the shoulders being of sufiicient size that the dimension of the inturned portions thereof is substantially greater than the thickness of the sheet metal used in forming the eye whereby the inturned shoulders provide bearing surfaces to engage and hold fabric in spaced relationship to the body portion of the eye when the prongs are projected through the fabric, and a backing plate having apertures arranged to receive the prongs of the eye member on the opposite side of the fabric from the shoulders for clinching of said prongs against the outer surface of the backing plate.

2. A garment fastening eye as set forth in claim 1 6 wherein the said backing plate is bowed inwardly at a central portion thereof toward the fabric and the body portion of the eye member so as to provide for spring engagement with a garment fastening hook.

3. A garment fastening eye as set forth in claim 2 wherein the body portion of the eye member is beveled along its longitudinal edges to facilitate engagement of the eye member with a garment fastening hook member.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 129,255 Saunders July 16, 1872 752,789 Mesick Feb. 23, 1904 1,107,750 Boye Aug. 18, 1914 1,387,135 Farnham Aug. 9, 1921 2,593,162 Markin Apr. 15, 1952 2,731,694 Steinmetz Jan. 24, 1956 2,772,464 Dovica Dec. 4, 1956 2,778,082 Stoughton Jan. 22, 1957 2,821,002 Wood Ian. 28, 1958 2,886,873 Walker May 19, 1959 

